The week in international Android news - Nov. 17, 2012

This week was Nexus week, and Google's new smartphone and tablet dominated the past seven days' international Android news. The Nexus 4 and Nexus 10went on sale, and promptly sold out in Australia, Europe and the United States, as buyers battled against technical issues with Google Play and Google Wallet and attempted to place orders. As of this weekend, many devices are in buyers hands -- the first Nexus tablets started arriving on Wednesday, followed a day later by the initial batch of Nexus 4s.

But even those lucky enough to place an order weren't quite home and dry. Later on Thursday Google contacted some buyers to inform them that their Nexus 4 order was on backorder for up to three weeks. In the meantime, the only way to get hold of a Nexus 4 is through a local carrier or retailer partner, like T-Mobile in the U.S. or O2 in the U.K. (The latter is reportedly an unlocked model.) With the Nexus 4's attractive pricing on Google Play in many countries, we're expecting it to be in short supply for much of the rest of the year.

So it's a bit of a mess, but at least devices are slowly starting to filter out. If you haven't already, be sure to check out our reviews of the Nexus 4 and Nexus 10.

In more upbeat news, Europe finally saw its Google Play Music launch this week, with content from all major music labels including longtime hold-out Warner Music Group. In addition, Europeans were first in line for Google's new music matching service, which augments the Music Uploader desktop app. Similar to iTunes Match, this eliminates the need to directly upload music that Google already has in its library.

And widespread 4G coverage inched closer towards reality for Brits, as regulator Ofcom set its timetable for the long-delayed LTE spectrum auction. O2, Vodafone and Three are expected to join existing LTE network EE sometime in Spring 2013.

That's it for this week. If you're awaiting a Nexus 4 or 10 delivery, here's hoping it finds its way to you safe and sound in the coming days. And if you've got news, be sure to mail us at the usual address.